Looking For Something?

We don’t know what baby Jesus’ first words were, but we do have four gospels that contain
many words He spoke while walking on this earth. Looking at the first words which each writer
records Christ speaking gives us key insights into His character and priorities.
When Jesus came to this earth, He opened a way for human beings to become part of God’s
family. In order to have that sort of relationship with God, we have to turn away from the sins
that used to shackle us and turn toward God. When Hebrews 6 talks about “the elementary
principles of Christ,” the first two listed are “repentance from dead works” and “faith toward God”
(Heb. 6:1, NKJV). Repentance and belief are foundational truths of our faith, and preaching that
message was one of Jesus’ main goals.
For centuries we have reflected on the Seven Last Words of Christ during Lent, but few people
have spent much time considering his earliest words in the Gospels at the same time. It might
seem like these are two very different things reserved for two different liturgical seasons: the
beginning is left for Advent and Christmas, while the ending is for Lent and Holy Week. But
these two seemingly distinct sets of words are significantly more intertwined than we would
usually imagine.
This is what is at the heart of reflecting on the Seven Last Words of Christ. This, too, is what
considering the first words of Christ means for us. Beneath the surface of a few sentences stand
profound truths that are not merely historical snippets for us to admire millennia later in our
annual recounting of that Good Friday afternoon. Instead, there is a richness to God’s
revelation, to the divine self-disclosure that takes place in the words passed on to us from the
mouth of the Word-made-flesh.
Christ Jesus died on the Cross to redeem mankind, to save us from our sins because of his love
for us. As recorded in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in the Holy Bible, Jesus
Christ was mocked, scorned, and tortured in the praetorium. Condemned to death by Pontius
Pilate, he carried his Cross up the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem to Calvary, was nailed to the
cross, and hung between two common criminals. He suffered an indescribable end, recalled by
the Church on Good Friday of Holy Week. The first words of Christ in each of the gospels builds

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on each other. In Matthew, we see Him fulfilling scriptures necessary to prove He was the
Messiah. In Mark, we get a mission statement for His ministry to preach God’s kingdom and turn
people back to true faith. Luke gives us insight into His mind, focus, and priorities, as well as the
information we need to find Him when we, too, seek God’s will. Now in John, Christ’s words ask
about the state of our own hearts.
One may meditate on the Passion of Christ by reflecting on his Seven Words on the Cross or by
a devotion known as “The Way of the Cross.” Jesus’ first words tell us where His priorities lie
and give insight His character. The words we speak do much the same for us, and His words in
John’s gospel point that out. So, let’s ask ourselves the question He asked those two disciples.
If Christ were to ask you, “What are you looking for?” what would your first answer be?